It's the perfect time to debate whether the government should compel Apple to help the FBI circumvent protections blocking access to the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone 5C.

"There's not a situation here where there is life and limb at stake," says EastWest Institute Global Vice President Bruce McConnell, a former top cybersecurity policymaker at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in this audio report (click player beneath image to listen).

Authorities recovered the iPhone following the December 2015 shootout in the California city that killed gunman Rizwan Farook and his accomplice and wife Tashfeen Malik hours after they attacked his work colleagues, leaving 14 dead and 22 wounded.

The iPhone 5C has a security feature ensuring that, after 10 unsuccessful login attempts, the data on the device is wiped out. The FBI feared that if it kept using brute-force to guess at the password, they'd lose any evidence the mobile device holds. They turned to Apple for help, but after talks broke down, the FBI sought the court order (see Apple-FBI Draw Lines in Crypto Battle).